Homily for 23 Mar 2018

23 Mar 2018

“To err is human; to forgive, divine” (Alexander Pope, 1711).  For a long time, since at least the beginning of the Church, we’ve recognized that who we are and what we do is blend of both human and divine.  We’re entirely human, but...we also have some divinity within us—not only in a figurative and poetic, but in a literal sense.

“To err is human; to forgive, divine.”  To stumble and fall is human; to get up and humbly keep going, divine.  To be weak is human; to accept the help of another, divine.  To compete is human; to practice good sportsmanship, divine.  To make mistakes is human; to learn and grow, divine.  We’re entirely human, but we have some divinity within us, too. 

And the more that divine part of us grows, the more we experience what we call “resurrected life.”  The resurrection isn’t just for when we die, it’s for today, too.  You know, at the heart of our God—literally in his very core, is Love itself: love, selfless sharing, companionship, compassion, vulnerability, trust...love.  And love is really at the core of who we are and what we do.  At our core, as humans, is divinity. 

And that’s really an astounding thing...we’re humans, and yet, we have something of the divine life built into us.  We’re human, but perhaps not entirely.  We’re also—at least, a little bit—like God, too.  And our prayer is that we “come to share in the divinity of Christ,” more and more each day, “as he humbled himself to share in our humanity.” 

May we come to share in the divinity of Christ, as he humbled himself to share in our humanity.